# Can someone explain why this is offensive? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 24, 2010, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245 "2010-01-24T17:10:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/21 "2010-01-26T13:14:55Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Didn’t we just have a thread about a blackface performance on TV in Australia, and how it was wrong of Americans to take offense at it, because it was done without racist intent? Errm, you may be mixing up two threads, there, the one about the Jackson 5 blackface skit, where I _think_ the general consensus was that it _was_ offensive, regardless of intent, and the one about the cricket KFC ad, where we decided the Americans had their panties in a bunch over nothing. ---
**Author:** ![Kal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9de053/32.png) [@Kal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kal)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/22 "2010-01-26T13:33:52Z")
> [@Foldup\_Rabbit](#): > > The CEO of the Four Host First Nations for the Olympics encouraged the Russian pair to get in contact with the Australians AND offered to educate them on Canadian culture. They probably fear that a dance in tribute to them would see the Russian couple dress up like Nanook of the North and skate along to a Ladysmith Black Mambazo tune. ---
**Author:** ![SmellMyWort](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SmellMyWort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmellMyWort)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/23 "2010-01-26T15:54:58Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > A coach or someone should have caught this. Obviously the coach was drunk on vodka. ---
**Author:** ![Vambo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/6de8d8/32.png) [@Vambo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vambo)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/24 "2010-01-26T16:15:04Z")
Needs more effin cow bell for starters! :eek: You can’t dress up like Black people and rip off their culture. Except for Rap, and I guess Blues but that’s it. Sometimes it’s just hard to let go the crutch. ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/25 "2010-01-26T16:25:10Z")
Whitey sure is between a rock and a hard place. He can’t imitate any other races, because that would make him racist/patronizing/co-opting - but at the same time, we’re constantly told that Whitey has no soul, that white people are boring and bland - “that is _so white_” has become shorthand for anything nerdy, stupid, lame, not cool, etc. White people can’t play basketball (despite the fact that basketball was invented by a white Canadian,) white people can’t dance (despite the fact that there’s not a single European culture that doesn’t have unique folk dances), etc. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/26 "2010-01-26T18:02:56Z")
Well, Boo Hoo! I guess you’ll just have to cry yourself to sleep at being left out of the Cool Minorities club. Asleep on a great big heap of White Privilege, that is. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/27 "2010-01-26T18:06:57Z")
Yeah, that’s right. If white people are caught playing basketball without a permit, they’re dragged out into the street, beaten, and forced to attend “Black people walk like this, but white people walk like THIS” indoctrination classes. ---
**Author:** ![Lama\_Pacos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Lama\_Pacos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lama_Pacos)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/28 "2010-01-26T18:19:53Z")
> [@Cat Whisperer](#): > > we live in a current culture where everyone is terrified to make even the most innocuous observation about race for fear of being labelled a racist Not sure I follow this. If we live currently in a culture where everyone is terrified to make even the most innocuous observation about race for fear of being labelled a racist, why is it that people frequently do just that? If you don’t believe my premise, I can find you numerous observations about race, from innocuous on up. ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/29 "2010-01-26T18:29:04Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Yeah, that’s right. If white people are caught playing basketball without a permit, they’re dragged out into the street, beaten, and forced to attend “Black people walk like this, but white people walk like THIS” indoctrination classes. You know exactly what I mean. Why has “white” become a catch-all term for everything nerdy, lame, uncool and uninteresting? I always hear people say stuff like, “he is just so _white_” in reference to someone who’s a dork, or dresses poorly, or can’t dance, or whatever. And I always hear people self-deprecatingly say, in jest, “I’m so white; I can’t dance to save my own life”. Why is this so common and what is the point of bringing race into it? ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/30 "2010-01-26T19:21:25Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > You know exactly what I mean. > > Why has “white” become a catch-all term for everything nerdy, lame, uncool and uninteresting? I always hear people say stuff like, “he is just so _white_” in reference to someone who’s a dork, or dresses poorly, or can’t dance, or whatever. And I always hear people self-deprecatingly say, in jest, “I’m so white; I can’t dance to save my own life”. Why is this so common and what is the point of bringing race into it? I think for one thing, the “White people are so lame” thing is something that white people themselves have embraced. It’s kind of like when you’re powerful or strong enough to mock yourself. I mean, when I see that kind of meme, I don’t really think it’s a non white person mocking Caucasians thing. Well, at one point perhaps it was but now it’s fairly mainstream. To the point where it’s fairly last decade now… ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2010, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/31 "2010-01-26T20:20:28Z")
> [@](#): > > **Can someone explain why this is offensive?** > The Russian Ice Dancing team is in hot water after doing this: > > [http://perezhilton.com/2010-01-23-offensive-ice-skating](http://perezhilton.com/2010-01-23-offensive-ice-skating) What was offensive was the link to Perez Hilton’s website. ---
**Author:** ![Mahna\_Mahna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e47c2d/32.png) [@Mahna\_Mahna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahna_Mahna)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/32 "2010-01-27T01:00:34Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > Whitey sure is between a rock and a hard place. He can’t imitate any other races, because that would make him racist/patronizing/co-opting - but at the same time, we’re constantly told that Whitey has no soul, that white people are boring and bland - “that is _so white_” has become shorthand for anything nerdy, stupid, lame, not cool, etc. White people can’t play basketball (despite the fact that basketball was invented by a white Canadian,) white people can’t dance (despite the fact that there’s not a single European culture that doesn’t have unique folk dances), etc. If Whitey and Whiteyette had taken the time to actually learn about Aborigine dance and music, rather than just hopping around to some digeridoo music, you might have had a valid point. But they didn’t. From what I understand of Aborigine culture (which, I’ll admit isn’t a whole lot), this was about as authentic as a 1950s schoolyard game of cowboys and indians. Let’s put it another way… did anyone give Paul Simon crap for his _Graceland_ album? You don’t get much whiter than a white Jew and former folk musician, and yet he’s lauded for introducing the world to traditional South African music and the awesomeness that was Ladysmith Black Mambazo. The difference is that this particular whitey took the time to respect and appreciate the culture he was borrowing from, rather than just patching something together because it would sound cool. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/33 "2010-01-27T01:45:08Z")
Think of it as Whitey’s version of a cargo cult. Actually, if this sort of outrage has traction, could somebody please do something about [Yanni?](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvJH_POzxmc) World culture is all just one big poopy diaper for him to smear all over the playpen. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/34 "2010-01-27T05:26:06Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > YI always hear people say stuff like, “he is just so _white_” in reference to someone who’s a dork, or dresses poorly, or can’t dance, or whatever. And I always hear people self-deprecatingly say, in jest, “I’m so white; I can’t dance to save my own life”. Why is this so common and what is the point of bringing race into it? You need to hang out with a better class of people, clearly. None of my White friends do this. I’m the only one I know who makes “dancing like a white boy” jokes, and \*then \*only to shock the newbs. ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/35 "2010-01-27T05:51:46Z")
Sounds like they got it all WRONG. I mean, besides it being meaningless, as they aren’t Aborigine. It sounds like Custer’s grandkids doing an ‘Indian’ dance in tan-face and then…doing it wrong. 😛 It’s one thing to showcase a culture; it’s another to spread misinformation. Why do it if you aren’t going to do it right? ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/36 "2010-01-27T15:55:20Z")
> [@Foldup\_Rabbit](#): > > What confuses me isn’t that the indigenous Australians were offended - I can understand that, even if I’m not sure I understand why - but that Canadian First Nations also seemed to take offense, and take pre-offense at what the Russians might make of Canadian indigenous peoples… The CEO of the Four Host First Nations for the Olympics encouraged the Russian pair to get in contact with the Australians AND offered to educate them on Canadian culture. Because there’s a lot of solidarity between Canadian First Peoples and other indigenous peoples through the world on issues that specifically affect indigenous peoples such as cultural appropriation, as well as colonialism and so forth. (My dad was present at several discussion meetings between indigenous people from Canada and Australia sharing experience and best practices on various subjects.) Canadian First Peoples are equally accustomed to seeing their culture and traditions cack-handedly lampooned in ways like this, so they know how it feels. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/37 "2010-01-27T16:48:37Z")
I remember an American Indian standup comic saying something along the lines of, “These dances of my people are mostly religious ceremonies. I mean, do you see Indians saying to each other, ‘Hey, guys! Let’s play Catholic!’ while bouncing around crossing themselves?” ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/38 "2010-01-27T21:40:10Z")
If they could find any ice, could the Aborigines get revenge by wearing tacky track suits and prison tattoos and do an ice dance where they sell their woman as undernourished, pasty-white sex slaves? ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/39 "2010-01-28T03:44:26Z")
> [@Two\_Many\_Cats](#): > > I remember an American Indian standup comic saying something along the lines of, “These dances of my people are mostly religious ceremonies. I mean, do you see Indians saying to each other, ‘Hey, guys! Let’s play Catholic!’ while bouncing around crossing themselves?” This pretty much sums up my response. It was just obviously inauthentic, and I had an instinctive fear that they were walking on sacred ground. And I also didn’t think it was very good. Just snapping your arms about in between classic moves is not a terribly ambitious routine. ---
**Author:** ![Perciful](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b38774/32.png) [@Perciful](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Perciful)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245/40 "2010-01-28T03:59:41Z")
I didn’t like the costumes and that awful sound in the backround. I prefer more of a ballet style music and costume in figure skating. It didn’t flow. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-explain-why-this-is-offensive/526245.md?page=3)